Broken Talon
by Crazyninjadude15
Summary: A story centered on the Tenno of Clan Steel Talon as they fight a battle on multiple fronts alongside their fellow Tenno, and even against. This is rated M mainly for violence and language, although other reasons may appear in the future. This is a fanfiction, therefore, I claim no rights to anything related to Waframe in any legal sense.
1. Chapter 1

_**Beginnings**_

Today was her very first day out of training. For most, this would be an exciting, if not monumental moment of their lives, but for Cordi, a young, bashful, and overall, unconfident Nova user, this was downright terrifying. Not only did she have very little, if any, real combat experience, but she knew very little people and those she did know, she had no way of contacting. This left her at a dilemma. Should she seek out a clan willing to take her? Or should she traverse the Origin System alone, until she found some people that would let her tag along? Unfortunately, Cordi liked none of these decisions, because both meant having to speak up or draw attention to herself, which, by no means, was her strong suit or within her comfort zone.

To say Cordi was incapable of fighting would be a rude and preposterous assumption. Cordi could easily handle herself in a fight. What mainly concerned her was what her peers may think of her prowess, be it too eager, not eager enough, too slow, too fast, etcetera. Cordi feared she would humiliate herself in the field in front of both her enemies and allies, which would ruin her standing, which even though almost nobody knew her name, she felt that it was precious and that she had to maintain it with utmost caution.

As all of these thoughts went rushing through her head, paying little heed to anything else as water does rocks, a rather curious set of purple eyes had caught sight of the introverted greenhorn, and felt that further investigation was a necessity.

Zora, an Ivara user, accustomed to the life of a real Tenno warrior little more than the source of her curiosity was, found the pondering Nova user to be an interesting spectacle. Not to say interesting Tenno were not uncommon within the Relays, Zora could easily find many interesting Tenno to talk to almost daily on her trips to the Relays. Be it to visit Baro Ki'Teer to look at his many exotic wares, or to relax between missions, Zora has never left the Relay dissatisfied by the people she met, and she was not about to break that streak.

Quietly, Zora approaches the silent Nova, smoothly weaving her way through the crowd while keeping Cordi in her gaze. The young lady was rather short and her whole appearance screamed introvert. Her blonde hair went down to the bottom of her neck, which, thankfully, did not clash with her white and gray Warframe. When she came within speaking distance of the silent Tenno, she was briefly confused by the fact that the woman had not yet noticed her, despite her attempts at making her approach, albeit being silent, known.

"Hello..?" She spoke in a tone that she believed was perfectly audible, but in truth, was very quiet. Unsurprisingly, Zora was unheard. In a second attempt, Zora moved a little more into her curiosity's line of sight.

"Um, hello..." Cordi, shocked by the stranger's sudden appearance, jumped in her seat considerably upon realizing she was being spoken to.

"Oh! Uh, hi. S-Sorry if I didn't notice you, I was deep in thought." This made Zora even more curious. What was she thinking about? How could it be so interesting that she hadn't noticed Zora approach and even greet her? Would she be willing to talk about it?

Having already learned the punishment for prying too much the hard way, Zora decided to keep these questions to herself until later, possibly when the timid lady felt more comfortable. Instead, Zora decided to start with names.

"I've never seen you here before. My name's Zora. What's yours?" The bashful Nova looks blankly at Zora for a moment, unsure of what to say, and internally scrambling for something to say

"C-Cordi. Nice to meet you. I-I'm new, that's why you've never seen me here. Today's my, uh... my first day." Cordi replied, quite obviously nervous. This was the first Tenno she had met that had battles under her belt, if she messed up and made herself look bad, it might as well have been the end of the world for her.

Zora's eyes fluttered a bit in surprise, she did not expect to see another greenhorn so soon after Zora herself left her training grounds barely weeks ago. This made her feel good, not only because she now had someone to relate with, but she knew that this would make Cordi feel slightly more comfortable, too, making it easier to befriend her. Zora enjoyed befriending introverts. It was reasonably challenging, and they usually have a much more interesting view of things than extroverts. Not to say Zora thought extroverts were boring, quite the contrary, actually. Some of her favourite people were extroverts.

"Really? Me too! I only arrived here a couple of weeks ago. Would you like me to show you around? There are a lot of interesting places here. Some crowded, some not." Lots of stress disappeared from Cordi's expression at that point. It was so good to know she wasn't the only one in the Relay with only half a clue, and that's being generous, of what to do or where to go. Excitedly, she nodded, eager to learn the best places to have some time to herself, and to overall know the place, and this rather peculiar woman a little better.

"I'd love that. Lead the way, Zora." Each of Zora's steps had a small bounce to them as she began her little tour. Once she led Cordi to the center of the main room, just behind the statue, she gestures to the back-right corner of the landing.

"This is where Baro Ki'Teer stops by every two weeks. He's got a lot of interesting things from the Void. A lot of people think he's ripping people off, but I honestly think they're worth every credit. He's rather nice to talk to, as well." She pauses, almost as if she were done talking, but quickly remembers something. "If you've bought something from him, of course. He doesn't like chatting if you're not going to buy anything." Satisfied with the information she gave, Zora gives Cordi an opportunity to ask questions. When she is met with silence, she takes it as a signal to move on, so she does.

Next, they arrive at a cross section of a hallway, going forward to two elevators, two doors past them, and two other hallways that branch off in two opposite directions

"If you go forward, those two doors lead to Teshin's little Zen room, where you can talk about the Conclave with him. The other door leads to a Navigation console so you can plan out missions while you're here. If you go up the elevator, you can find Darvo's shop and Simaris' Sanctuary."

Quite frankly, Cordi had no idea who most of those names belonged to. All besides Teshin, of course, who was widely known as the founder of the Conclave, but his name was the only name she recognized.

"Who are Darvo and Simaris? I haven't heard of them before." Cordi tilted her head only slightly, but enough that someone as sharp-eyed as Zora could easily detect the movement.

"Oh, Darvo is a Corpus black marketer who does most of his business with Tenno, and Simaris is a Cephelon that looks after his Sanctuary, where he keeps... some sort of digital copy of lifeforms scanned by Tenno on the field. I'm not sure how it works. He has some very interesting views on things, though; you should give him a visit sometime."

Just as she did the first time, Zora remained silent, allowing Cordi an opportunity to ask any more questions. When she doesn't, Zora moved on through the hallway on their left, showing her new friend-to-be the numerous doors to the Syndicate rooms.

"The Syndicates don't want much to do with new warriors like us. They normally talk to Tenno who have made more of a name for themselves. They don't need to be famous; they just need to know a lot about what they're doing. I haven't been able to join one yet, but Cephelon Suda sounds like a very interesting Cephelon to talk to."

The two continued through the Syndicate Halls while Zora explained all of the Syndicates' goals. Cordi listened attentively and silently, merely nodding as she absorbed this information like a sponge does water. Once Zora had showed her friend-to-be the Syndicates, she decided to move on to the more hidden areas of the Relay, starting with one of her favourites, a platform high above the statue in the central landing. With little difficulty, both women make it up to the hidden place. Despite being out of site, a couple reserved-looking Tenno are also here, most likely thinking to themselves.

"This is my favourite place. It isn't too crowded here, but it isn't empty. I like to come here to think or chat with people who are willing. Speaking of which, I'm surprised Otho isn't here. Normally he'd be sitting right there." The quiet woman points to a small pillar, no one sits on top of it.

"Maybe he's on a mission." Cordi suggested, only looking briefly at the vacant pillar before looking back at the Ivara user, who nods slightly.

"Probably." Zora realizes this is a good spot to stop for a moment and get to know Cordi a little better. "Would you like to sit down and chat?"

Cordi beams a rather sweet look towards Zora as she nods. "Sure." Seating herself in front of one of the vacant pillars, Cordi tucks her knees in slightly and wraps her arms around her legs. "Well, you already know that I've just got here from training. I'm actually rather nervous." Cordi shifts her eyes down, away from Zora's as she finishes her sentence.

"Oh, don't be. Everyone is very nice here. You shouldn't have much of a problem since you passed training. Although some people just don't like talking at all. They're easy to spot. They look like they've lost things."

There was a brief pause as Cordi pondered what she meant. It didn't take long to realize she was referring to many of the battle-hardened Tenno, specifically ones who have lost friends in battle. Cordi tries to change the subject. "I'll keep that in mind. Where are you from?" Cordi tilts her head towards Zora as she asks her, genuinely curious as to where such an observant woman was raised.

"I'm from Kronia Relay. It was a little rougher there than here at Larunda, but it was better than living on a planet. I've heard conditions are relentless down there. I can't say I come from a family of warriors, but I felt, sort of a calling towards this life. I can say honestly I'm enjoying it so far. What about you? Where are you from?"

It made sense to Cordi that observation was a vital skill for the life of someone growing up in Kronia Relay. Larunda being the most populated Relay, there aren't many Tenno warriors in Kronia, meaning average Tenno security is the only thing between criminals and their goals. To top it all off, security is spread thin there.

"I'm from one of the minor Relays. It's, well, gone now. That's what made me want to become a warrior, to make sure it doesn't happen to anyone else. I liked my time in the training grounds, and I had a couple of good friends, but we went separate ways."

Zora changed her expression as Cordi told her these things, each expression an acceptable reaction to each bit of information. She tilts her head, and blows some of her dark hair out of her face when it gets in her eyes.

"Are you looking for a clan to join? The clan I'm in is recruiting. I think you'd make a good addition." She asks this with a hopeful expression on her face.

Cordi was excited by this. Finally she would have the opportunity to meet people who would help her in missions and to improve her skills.

"I would love to join! I've been looking for a clan that would be willing to take me in for most of the day." This, of course, was a lie. Not a harmful lie, but a lie, nonetheless, she actually spent most of the day sitting where she was, worrying about her reputation and what would happen to it if she did something.

Zora beams a rather mild, but nonetheless cheerful smile at Cordi. "That's great! I can take you there now, if you want. I'll need to talk to the leader, and then she'll have to take a look at you, but I'm sure she'll let you in, the clan's always willing to recruit anyone looking to join."

"Sounds good! Let's go." Cordi stood, barely containing her excitement. Zora stood after and lead the way. When they made it to their Lisets, they immediately set course to the clan's dojo, Zora of course leading her new friend through space.

* * *

When they arrived, Cordi marveled at the sheer scale of the dojo. The ceiling laid well above her, and the room itself was massive, filled with crowds of Tenno who were talking to one another, preparing for a mission, or simply going to another room. She followed Zora through the Grand Hall as she took Cordi to a smaller room, where a rather tall woman stood at a large table with two other Tenno on either side. Before speaking, Zora waited for the woman to move her attention to the two of them. It took a while, and the conversation could easily be heard.

"With all due respect, Elpis, I don't think you're giving Magnus enough credit. He's fully capable of wiping out bases of that scale. He's done it before." The helmeted Oberon user to the woman's left said. His voice was deep and could turn iron to gold.

"Yes, but I don't think he's capable of doing that before he's even landed. I just got off comms with him and he told me he's still on his way there. There might be something else going on over there." The Oberon looked like he was about to respond, but he noticed the two who have just entered.

"You have visitors, Commander."

The tall, short-haired woman looked up from whatever was on the table, probably displays of different information. "Hm? Oh, is there something you need?" The woman seemed rather disinterested in the two, but nonetheless respectful.

"I've found a recruit you might be interested in, Commander. She's new, like me, but she's got potential, Ma'am." Zora's attitude changed dramatically around these people. Rather than the soft, mild expression that she wore in Larunda, her face wore a rather serious and hardened one, and her quiet, barely audible voice was much louder and clearer. Noticing this change, Cordi decides that following suit would be the best course of action.

The woman that Cordi could only guess was named Elpis raises an eyebrow as she seems to scan her entire person with her eyes in such a fashion that made Cordi rather nervous and uncomfortably aware of her overall appearance.

"Really? Well, let's test her mettle then. Baldomar, take them to the testing grounds; we'll see if she's got what it takes. I wish I could join you, but this, anomaly, requires my attention." The helmeted Oberon, whose name was Baldomar, nods as he walks towards the two.

"Of course, Commander." After walking past them he gestures to the noobies to follow him. Baldomar takes them to a sizeable room, mostly empty, save for a large bell at the very back of the room. The grey and gold Oberon stand at the far end of lowered section of the room, most likely where the fighting happens.

"Firstly, I require your name." Were the only words that left the paladin's mouth as he collected two wooden Bo staves, not even close to being lethal.

"C-Cordi, sir." She internally cursed at herself for stuttering.

"Sir?" The figure chuckled as he tossed one of the staves towards Cordi. "You need not call me that. You may call me Baldomar."

"Yes s- er, Baldomar." Cordi caught the staff with little difficulty and held it passively.

"That's more like it. If you decide to stay with us, Cordi, you will be seeing me often, for I train the recruits. I do believe we will get along fine." Baldomar held his staff with one hand, planting one end of it into the ground.

"Whenever you are ready, Zora, you may strike the bell." Cordi's helmet surrounded her head, protecting it from any harmful blows.

When the bell was struck, Baldomar sprung into action immediately, leaping forwards in an attempt to overwhelm her with sudden strikes and movements. Thankfully, Cordi was one the most attentive of her class, so she quickly relocated herself behind Baldomar as he landed, and attempted to hit him in the back. This attack, of course, was easily parried by the more than experienced paladin, who quickly commenced a counter-offensive, unleashing a flurry of blows towards Cordi, most of which were parried by the sharp greenhorn, although she was not prepared for a leg-sweep which nearly knocked her off her feet. Just barely regaining her balance, Cordi already knew that she has very little time to prepare herself for the paladin's next strike. When she fully recovered from the sweep, she is met by a rather solid piece of wood flying towards her face, which she does not parry in time, and is knocked to the floor.

When Cordi regained her focus, she saw Baldomar reaching his hand toward her in an offer to help. She took it with gratitude and with the help of the paladin, stood up, but not so quickly as to send her senses into a jumble.

"You fought well, Cordi. I did not expect you to react so quickly to my lunge, or my strikes." His helmet did not do a good job at expressing how impressed Baldomar sounded. "You needn't worry that you lost; that is normal, it is that you held your own so well is what impresses me. I will be sure to tell the Commander of your admirable talent when she is no longer occupied. Until then, you may feel free to wander and make yourself at home. I feel confident that the Commander will see your value." Baldomar bowed slightly to Cordi, which was returned with a deeper bow from her.

"Thank you, Baldomar." Cordi's helmet recedes back into her Warframe, her face is flushed red from the fight.

When they left the room, Zora gave Cordi a tour of the place, showing her the laboratories where weapons research was done, then the "Testing Grounds," where potential recruits were tested, or others were tested on their skill in order to be promoted, it also housed the Command Center, where missions are planned, observed and assisted, this was where they had found Elpis. After those, she showed her some of the other "Districts" of the dojo, there was the Rec District, where Tenno gathered to socialize and to relax it was also where personal quarters were kept. The Training District was next, where Tenno were trained by people like Baldomar. Finally, there was the Production District, where the Labs, reactors, and Foundries were housed. This was the most interesting place to Cordi, as she was always fascinated by what goes on in the laboratories and foundries, and what could be made. Cordi decided she would wander on her own for a while, after following Zora around for what she could guess was an hour, and bid her friend goodbye.

For a moment, she considered entering the research labs and the foundries, but in the end, decided that she should wait until she was officially part of the clan. So she wandered throughout the Rec District, appreciating the synthetic plant life in many of the rooms, but especially enjoyed a rather dark lily garden, which had four bridges each moving into the center of the room from each of the doors. Rather than sit on the bridge, Cordi decided to sit in one of the far corners, each had a small mass of earthy dirt and rock, packed tight to form small islands in the sea of lily pads. Cordi liked the silence and bliss of this room; it allowed her to think with utmost clarity and to relax.

* * *

After what Cordi could guess was a half hour, the tall Tenno named Elpis entered the room, almost as if she knew Cordi was there. Not that the fact would surprise her, she noticed a reasonable amount of surveillance throughout the dojo, and this room would be no exception. Cordi stood as the tall, authoritative woman approached her, and quickly made adjustments to her posture.

"Welcome to the Steel Talon, Cordi. I'm sure you've already heard my name. If you didn't, my name's Elpis." The Commander extends her hand in an offer to shake. When her hand is taken, Elpis gives a firm, if not slightly constricting, handshake. "But for a while you'll be calling me Commander, though I can see you rising through the ranks at a steady pace judging by what Baldomar told me. Now that I've got the anomaly on Ceres out of the way, I'll show you to your quarters." Elpis sounded much more like she was telling Cordi this than offering. She didn't give the greenhorn any time to respond as she immediately swiveled one hundred eighty degrees towards the door she came from and marched forward at a brisk pace. Cordi quickly caught up, although with difficulty while at the same time she tried to keep in a fashion barely resembling orderly.

It doesn't take long for Elpis to lead Cordi to her quarters. The room is reasonably spacious, but not luxuriously so. The room has a bed, window, closet, nightstand, and its own bathroom with all of the bathroom necessities.

"This is your dorm. I'll let you get acquainted with the clan for the rest of the day, so kick back and relax. Your first assignment will be tomorrow."

Cordi gives Elpis a deep bow. "Thank you, Commander." Elpis returns the bow and leaves the greenhorn to her own devices.

* * *

Pain, that was all she could feel. That was all she could ever feel. Of course, after what happened to her, what else _was_ there to feel? After being torn apart and stitched back together again, time and time again, combined with metal and flesh that had not belonged to her, was there really anything other than pain to feel? So there she sat, knees tucked into her chest as she stared into the ground for what seemed like hours on end, with complete disregard of the long-since present storm, raging against all that was made by man, and the field of blood and corpses that laid in her wake.

What seemed like years ago, she was abducted just as she drowsily awoke from her cryogenically-induced slumber, unable to act with any remote form of haste. They had turned who was once a valiant and righteous warrior, into a broken, quivering madwoman, who fights not with honour, but with maddened desperation. Not only was she now these things, she was also alone, hungry, wet and cold. She knew she had to find one of her own, another Tenno. Despite knowing that doing this was her only chance of survival, she was afraid. Afraid of the ways of her people that she had to cast aside just to survive in the laboratory in which she suffered. Her enemies suffer greatly before death, she killed them in ways that would make even the murderers of old shiver and cringe in disgust. Worst of all, she had done this not in the name of her people or the balance she had sworn to uphold, but in the name of revenge and survival.

Her actions were not what bothered her most about this. What bothered her most about this was how weak she felt. Not physically, but mentally and emotionally. She was once stalwart and unmoving, nothing could shake her. Yet here she was, sitting, shivering in the rain. Then suddenly, she lifted her head towards the sound of loud and heavy footsteps coming from the darkness beyond the single spotlight, focused on her, and her alone, for she was, to her previous knowledge, the last living thing in the Grineer base in which she sat. What was once a securely defended military headquarters was now a mass grave, the corpses of the Grineer soldiers that had once guarded it now peppered the entire area, torn to pieces in a fear-induced rampage. Whoever was approaching her knew that they could either calm her or kill her, and she wasn't sure of which of the scenarios she would prefer. Suddenly coming to a halt, the approaching stranger made no other noise, leaving only the continuous _pitter patter_ of the intense rainstorm to disrupt the silence.

Having enough of the silent presence of them, the sitting woman tried her best to intimidate the stranger. "St-Stay away. I-I-I killed these people. Y-You could easily be next." She says, hoping that the words alone will intimidate the stranger, although she knew it would be unlikely, judging that her blood-soaked body would have scared off those not brave enough to fight.

In a deep and calm voice, the still unseen, stranger spoke. "I do not doubt that. I've witnessed the battle, well, the aftermath of it, at least." With surprising silence, the stranger stepped forward in such a fashion that he did not alarm the broken woman, shivering in the rain. The stranger was not fully enveloped by the light, but it was easy to see that he was heavily clad in enough armour to stop a bullet in its tracks. The armour itself was smooth and round, in such a way that it shimmered in the light; it was quite obvious this was a Rhino user. "I do not wish to be your enemy. I seek your trust and friendship, and to help you." Moving again as silent as a cloudless night, the man extended his hand toward the shivering mess of a Tenno, in an offer to help her up.

Rather than take his hand, which was what a part of her was screaming at her to do, she only stared at where she guessed the man's face would be. "Y-You seek to help a beast. I am no more than a rabid animal, waiting to be put down."

Still, the hand was stretched before her, waiting to be taken. "A rabid animal would have attacked me by now. I know people who can help you. I can take you to a place you can call home. Please, walk with me."

And at that, she gave in to the urge, and took his hand, shaking more than ever. The man pulled her up, enough to help her onto her feet. At that moment, she realized exactly why the man offered to help her up. Not only out of kindness, but concern. The blood that soaked her body did not only belong to the soldiers she had killed, but also to herself. Although she was fully aware of the many gashes and bullet holes strewn across her body, she did not feel a thing, the pain the Corpus had inflicted upon her had desensitized her to anything less. Upon realizing this, the shivering, afraid, and wounded Tenno leaned against the other for support, for her body, despite not feeling the wounds, was still very weak because of them combined with exhaustion.

"Do you remember your name?" The man tilted his head towards the weakened Tenno as he asked.

This question actually came as a shock to her. Her own name never came to mind throughout what seemed like years to the Tenno. Then again, there were more present things that kept her mind occupied. No matter how hard she thought, she could not remember her name. Not only was she held captive for who knows how long, but cryosleep can cause major cases of memory loss if the subject is not extracted by another Tenno who either knew them or were given knowledge of their past. That is what caused the breakdown. Not knowing her own name caused her to finally break into tears. She no longer had a name. She could only be known as a monster. An animal. A disgusting creature, hell bound and bent on blood. That was all she could be identified as.

Not to the stranger. The stranger saw her as an unfortunate soul. Someone who needed help, and would receive it, no matter what they said. So as the woman fell to her knees in despair, the tall, burly mountain of a man lowered himself with her, ensuring that she did not come to further harm upon landing. Despite so desperately wanting to comfort that woman, he knew that he had no words that would comfort her, for he knew that he could not come close to comprehending the suffering she endured throughout what harrowing event broke her. So he did not speak, in fear that he would make it worse, instead; he gingerly placed a single hand on the weeping Tenno's shoulder as he watched over her, guarding her.

This went on for several minutes, although they felt like hours to the woman, if it were not for the stranger, it would have no sign of stopping.

"There is no need to lose all hope. What is lost can always be replaced. Do you remember anything before the Corpus took you?"

The only thing the, now nameless, Tenno could rememeber was falling from the sky. When she tells the stranger this, he stops to ponder.

"Kalani. That will be your new name. The name means 'of the heavens.' I believe that suits the memory rather well. Don't you think?"

"Kalani... I... I like it." Kalani looks back at the Rhino user, for once in the time she could remember, she felt, even if only a little bit, happy, although she shows little sign of it. "Th-Thank you." This happiness quickly subsided, returning her to her husk-like feeling of pain. "What's your name?"

"My name is Magnus. It is nice to meet you, Kalani. Now, let's get you to my clan's dojo, where my friends can see to your wounds." At that, the two left the Grineer docks for Magnus' Xiphos-Class landing craft, paying no heed to the ever-raging storm of Ceres, and the ever-so-slowly decaying graveyard that was once a Grineer headquarters.

* * *

By the time Kalani had arrived at Magnus' home, his clan's dojo, she had calmed herself. On his Xiphos landing craft, she had eventually pulled herself together and shut herself away into her mind, as far as Magnus could tell. She had taken off her helmet, after what seemed most likely years of it being on, but seemed to cherish little about the moment. Thankfully, there were some medical supplies on the ship he could use to tend to Kalani's wounds to the best of his abilities, but ultimately she would have to go straight to Thaleia. Her face seemed like one that would belong to a spirited, idealistic woman, but her expression contrasted greatly. Her sky-blue eyes aimed a thousand mile stare through the window ahead of her as she sat, knees tucked in to her chest, just in front of the Codex. There were a couple attempts to engage Kalani in a conversation, but all were met with silence.

The always cheery Ordis spoke up once the craft arrived at his clan's dojo. "Welcome home, Operator: Magnus! I hope you can find help for Operator: Kalani." Getting Kalani on Ordis' list of operators was slightly tedious. The instant Ordis detected her, he thought she was a Corpus proxy, which certainly wasn't good on Kalani. After a lot of yelling, Magnus was able to fix the problem, and everyone had calmed down.

"As do I, Ordis." Magnus didn't need to signal Kalani to tell her the ride was over. Without a word, the woman stood and made way to the exit, rejecting any offer of help.

When they enter, Zora turned her head towards the two, and immediately overcame with curiosity, approached them. "Hi Magnus. Who's this? Did you find her during your mission?" It was quite obvious Zora had many more questions, one of them having to be related to Kalani's Warframe, but thankfully, she kept her questions to herself

When Kalani made no sign of responding, Magnus replied. "Hail, Zora. This is Kalani. She actually completed my mission for me, before I arrived. If you would excuse us, she needs to be seen by Thaleia, for she has sustained some concerning wounds."

Zora complied and stepped out of the way. As the two moved on, Zora watched Kalani with interest, many questions bubbling in her mind.

Magnus stops when they approach the med bay, and looks to Kalani. "Stay here for a moment. I'll see if she's in the room." When Kalani nods, Magnus moves on into the room and immediately finds Thaleia, the Trinity user in charge of the med bay and anything to do with it, and lovingly titled the Honourary Mother of the clan. Upon immediately detecting Magnus entering the room, she turned her head away from what she was doing and looked towards him.

"Oh, hey Magnus! How was the mission? Do you need anything?" Beaming him a warm smile, she put down a small tablet she was holding in her hands and walked toward him.

"Yes, actually. I found someone when I arrived; she had already cleared the area of enemies, but took a lot of hits, herself. Would you take a look at her?"

Thaleia leaned to the side a bit to look behind him, and upon seeing Kalani, beamed a warm smile towards her. Kalani did not return it. "Of course! Bring her here." After being waved over by Magnus, Kalani made her approach somewhat hesitantly, and stopped rather close to Magnus. Her expression was blank as she stared through Thaleia.

"This is Kalani. I don't think you'll hear much from her. She's... been through a lot, by the looks of her." Magnus glanced at Kalani, a hint of concern showing in his eyes.

"It's nice to meet you, Kalani. My name's Thaleia. You'll end up seeing me a lot, if you decide to stay with us. Come with me, I'll patch you up." The cheery Trinity walked away further into the room, although Kalani stood still, hesitant. She looked up at Magnus, with a look only he saw. He said something and nodded his head in Thaleia's direction. Whatever he said comforted Kalani and she followed Thaleia into the room.

"Alright, let's take a look at you. We'll need to take off your..." At this moment, Thaleia finally noticed how damaged Kalani's Warframe looked, and that it appeared to have been hybridized with Corpus technology.

Kalani waited for Thaleia to finish her sentence, staring into her still, as if looking into her, reading her.

"Your Warframe. Sorry, I just, uh, seemed to be drawing blanks for a second. Follow me." She lead Kalani into another room with equipment needed to remove the husk of a Warframe. When it was removed, Kalani sat on one of the beds, naked. Thaleia inspected each and every wound on her body, plucking bullets out of her body as if they were seeds from a strawberry.

Thaleia was amazed by how many hits she had taken. Any regular Tenno would have collapsed, if not go into shock. This woman, however, was an entirely different case. She never even flinched when the bullets were pulled out of her, and not even a wince was seen or heard when anti-bacterial spray was applied to her wounds. "How are you still standing? I've seen Tenno with half as many bullets in them barely walking." Her question was met with silence. When she looked up from one of her wounds, she noticed Kalani staring into nothingness, as if reliving a memory. She decided to continue tending to her wounds and leave the subject alone, to avoid triggering anything bad.

When she finished stitching shut the last wound, she found some clothes for Kalani to wear, and Kalani took them without a word, not even of gratitude. Drifting past Magnus, she left the med bay to wander the dojo aimlessly, but was stopped by the peculiar Ivara user named Zora.

"Hi Kalani. My name's Zora, I think Magnus already said my name, so I think you remember it, but you look like you remember too many bad things..."

Kalani had cast the same blank, emotionless gaze at Zora as she did Thaleia without saying a word. She did not want to talk to someone who quite obviously wanted to ask questions, so she walked past her, aimlessly wandering in the first direction she thought of.

Kalani walked for what seemed to be several minutes, maybe a half hour, until she found a quiet room full of plant life that was unoccuped. Or, she thought it was, at least, until she was greeted by a voice whose owner she could not see.

"H-Hello. Are you new here, too?"

Kalani did not respond, she instead looked around the room until she found the owner of the voice, a short and young woman, who couldn't be older than eighteen biological years. Kalani sits in a darkened corner, opposite of the stranger uninterested in talking to her. The girl, however, seemed much more interested in Kalani than vice versa.

"Don't talk much, d-do you?" When she is met with further silence, she gets up and joins Kalani. "I-I'll take that as a no. My name's Cordi, I'm, uh, new to this whole thing."

Kalani bore a hole in the floor with her blank gaze as Cordi continued talking about pointless matters. Where she came from, her family, her, albeit few, friends, her past. It was when she began asking questions about her did Kalani cast her blank gaze towards Cordi, the expression she wore was most likely enough to unsettle someone as timid as the greenhorn enough for her to leave.

To her surprise, Cordi did not leave, but she did apologize and stop talking, which was enough for Kalani. After a while, the silence seemed to get to the girl and she left, probably to talk to someone else. Kalani did not care. In fact, she relished in the fact she was finally alone. She spent this time in solitude staring into the ground, trying to hold back the ever-searing pain that was her past for so long she wouldn't be surprised if she had done so the entire night.


	2. Chapter 2

_**Fear the Silence, Dread the Screams**_

Foes of the Tenno have long since learned to fear the silence that they are known for. For many years, the Grineer and Corpus tried to devise a means of detecting them, but no new way has been discovered, or will be. This silence has been known to drive some Corpus into paranoia, and even cause unease within Grineer ranks. Although on this day, the Corpus have quickly learned that they not only must fear the silence, but they must dread the very opposite of what heralds the Tenno. Screams. Piercing, agonized, and furious screams. This is what the Corpus stationed on a small vessel orbiting Mars learned very quickly.

Four Tenno, or, to a very skeptical Elpis, three Tenno and something else, infiltrated the Corpus vessel orbiting the Red Giant quietly. So far, everything was going according to Elpis' plan. This was surprising, because she expected the "Tenno" Kalani to be much less cooperative. Elpis used an Excalibur Warframe, complete with a Latron, Marelok and the Dex Dakra, twin blades gifted to her by the Lotus herself. She was accompanied by Magnus, Baldomar and the previously mentioned Kalani for this mission. It was a simple task. Exterminate all Corpus in the vessel, find a terminal with some specific data on a secret Corpus project, and extract. Despite the simplicity of the mission, planning was required. From the infiltration point to the extraction zone and everything in between, Elpis had planned it all. Quickly and quietly, Elpis planned to clear each room using sudden ambushes.

"Alright, people. Quick and quiet. I've got most of the vessel mapped out, so we can position ourselves perfectly for each ambush. We're not going in guns blazing on this one, everyone got that?"

Magnus grunted in approval.

The paladin nodded his head. "Affirmative."

There was no word from Kalani. Elpis knew from the start she was going to be a problem.

"Kalani, did you hear me?"

Still no response. When Elpis turned to where Kalani should have landed, she noticed the berserker was gone.

"Where is Ka-"

Elpis was cut off by an echoing scream. This was no scream of pain or terror. This was a scream of pure, unbridled fury. Not long after, alarms were blaring. Elpis was fuming. Hours were spent devising this plan, hours of debates, observation and noting were spent on making this plan a good one, and what did the barely sane woman do? Destroyed it. Ruined it entirely. It may not have resulted in the loss of the mission, far from it, but now it was not unlikely that the Corpus knew where the Talons were aiming, and might just move before they beaded in.

"How did she leave without us noticing? Surely we would have seen her." Baldomar was obviously baffled by this.

Magnus nodded up at a vent. "If she even followed us to begin with. I feel we are slightly at fault for not noticing her deviating path." He shrugged. "No matter. I'll catch up with her; I suggest you two find the data we need." At that, Magnus leaped back through the vent he came through in pursuit of the madwoman.

The other two Tenno nodded and moved on. For a while, there were no signs of Corpus anywhere, but they soon discovered where they gathered when they opened a slightly damaged door. What they found on the other side was a bloody mess. Mutilated corpses of the crewmen and MOAs were strewn all across the spacious room. None of the corpses were in one piece, eviscerated extremities, organs and machinery were splayed everywhere, not all of the corpses were on the ground, either; some corpses were found hanging from the rafters by their entrails. If Elpis had not known Kalani was the one who did this, she would have been sooner to guess a pack of giant feral Kubrow ran through the place. The crewmen were not all that were torn to shreds, though. If it could be broken, Kalani thoroughly destroyed it. Terminals were torn from the walls and floors and smashed to pieces, one was even found embedded in an unfortunate crewman's cranium. Not even the walls were safe from the madwoman's wrath. Kalani seemed to have torn a hole through a wall, and even into the ventilation system. It was safe to say nowhere was safe from this animal of a Tenno, for she was quite literally in the walls.

Baldomar shivered. This was very uncommon of him, as it took a lot to cause unease within the steadfast paladin. "She showed those men no mercy. Not even in death. It couldn't be possible to inflict so many wounds on a body such as the Corpus' before their death. Whatever they had done to her surely broken her. Swiftly and thoroughly, just as she brutalized them in return."

Another scream was heard, this time louder and angrier. The scream made both of the Tenno uneasy. It wasn't the sound or proximity of the scream which unsettled them, but the fact that it came from a Tenno, or at least, what once was a Tenno.

"Let's move on. The data has to be here somewhere."

They moved on through the mass grave. When they left the room, the only blood visible was a trail, most likely left by the madwoman who had torn the previous room apart, although this room was equally vandalized. Hand railings were torn from their places, wall paneling was utterly destroyed, and even sections of the ceiling were torn down to reveal power conduits and other essentials, all of which were severed, including a water pipe. Water poured down from the ceiling, finding its way into other systems, and even causing some systems to fail or short-circuit. Lights were beginning to flicker and doors started to fail, refusing to open. This problem did not seem to bother Kalani, however, for when they arrived at the end of the curved hallway, a giant hole was torn into the long and sturdy door at the end.

"What fury could drive a woman into such a state that she would rip and tear through a door made of solid steel to get to her victims? The suffering Kalani endured at the Corpus' hands must have been unimaginably cruel." Baldomar said as he observed the remarkable damage caused. "She has my pity."

The two entered another room flooding with blood and water, there was so much of both one would roughly estimate the pool was nearly half a centimeter deep, if, of course, the many, many corpses had not covered the floor so thoroughly neither Tenno touched the actual floor often.

"She's going to have my displeasure if she doesn't get in line. We spent hours on that plan, Baldomar, almost an entire day! Then the madwoman flushes it all down for her revenge."

"I would suggest patience, Commander. She will know her place with time."

"She'd better." Elpis only hoped the berserker hadn't destroyed the data in her rampage. "The ship's blueprint tells me that the main database is in the next room. Let's hope Kalani didn't rip it apart, too."

When they arrived at the next room, Elpis was relieved to see the room still intact. It seemed Kalani had dug another hole through the wall into the vents. She was going to be difficult to track down for Magnus.

"Thank the Lotus the terminal is intact. Let's get the data and finish the mission." With little effort, Elpis hacked into the terminal and looked for the specific file. There were whispers of a certain "Project E." There was little about what it was, just that it would make the Corpus much more powerful, and that it had to be stopped.

When Elpis searched these keywords, she found the file, if only for a moment, before it was immediately deleted by a failsafe mechanism, most likely triggered by the alarm.

"Fucking damn it!" Elpis punched the terminal. Sparks flew from it as her fist destroyed the monitor. "The alarm triggered an autonomous deletion of the file. It's gone."

"Are we sure the alarm caused this? A facial recogni-" Baldomar was interrupted by an obscenely furious Elpis.

"I am fucking sure it was the alarm! Do you _see_ a fucking camera on this piece of shit!?" Elpis was fuming even more at this point. She and the madwoman Kalani were going to have a talk after this. "I am fucking done! We're leaving." Elpis swiftly pivoted away from the terminal and stormed towards extraction. Before he catches up with her, Baldomar tries to get a hold of Magnus.

"Magnus, this is Baldomar, do you read?" Baldomar is greeted by a confirmatory grunt. "What is your status? Have you found Kalani?"

"Affirmative, but not for long. She's fast and angry." Baldomar winced when screams belonging to both Kalani and Corpus overpower anything else. Shortly after that, the screeching of metal being ripped apart pierced Baldomar's ears.

"Try to pacify her, Magnus. We can't afford bringing that into the dojo, and Elpis is furious enough. We can only guess that the alarm caused a system wipe and deleted the data we came for."

A concurring grunt was the only sound Magnus made before he cut comms. Baldomar caught up with Elpis with little difficulty.

"I have told Magnus to pacify Kalani, Commander. I am sure she will be calm by the time we catch up."

Elpis did not respond, but nodded.

Unfortunately, calming Kalani had been proving to be much harder than originally thought by Magnus. She would not respond to any attempt to communicate, and would simply barrel past Magnus, even when he was in his Iron Skin. Kalani could not be stopped head on, so Magnus decided to take it from another angle. Despite having killed anything not in a Warframe, Kalani was still screaming in fury. She ripped and torn apart anything that could be destroyed. She shattered terminal displays, tore power cables from the walls, and even brought down several catwalks located in the larger rooms. If Magnus stood in her way, he was sure she would get fed up with him at some point and lash out at him, too. So he didn't. Instead, he crept up behind her as she was furiously clawing away at one of the dysfunctional doors and trapped her in a bear hug, holding on to her as tightly as he could.

It was difficult to keep her in his grasp. She writhed, squirmed and thrashed against Magnus, all the while clawing at his arms with little effect. She spoke no words, she only screamed at Magnus, which was more than enough to tell him she was furious now at him, although, gradually, her screams turned to yells, her yells turned to curses, and eventually, her curses turned to silence.

When the other two Tenno arrived, Magnus appeared to have made no effort to restrain her, but in truth, he was exhausted, his arms were sore and screaming to be rested, but he held tight until Kalani raged no further, and was still.

Magnus looked back from her to Elpis and Baldomar, for a moment they were both shocked by how bloody Kalani was. Her dark-coloured Warframe could not be seen past the crimson of blood and the small pieces of viscera that stuck to her Warframe.

Magnus nodded towards the extraction zone. "I suggest you two move on ahead, we'll catch up." Elpis only nodded before storming past the rest, her fury was obvious. Before Baldomar left, he stopped to look to Kalani. "I should warn you, Kalani. Elpis _will_ want to talk to you upon our return, and she won't be calm about it." When Kalani gave him no response, Baldomar took his leave.

Kalani did not move at all. For the most part she had calmed down. When Baldomar was out of sight, she spoke. "You can let me go. We're all that's breathing now." Magnus waited cautiously before he complied, as soon as he let go of her, Kalani dropped to her knees, the exhaustion from battle having caught up with her.

Magnus kneeled beside Kalani, his head turned slightly towards her "Can you walk?"

"I'll need a moment." Kalani sat on her knees, panting. Her back was slumped as she stared at the ground and her damaged hands were resting lazily on the floor, blood had begun to pool at her fingertips. Even after she appeared to have regained her strength, Kalani remained on her knees, staring at the floor, almost as if savouring something.

"We need to move on, Kalani. The Commander is angry enough as she is, we shouldn't keep her waiting."

Kalani slowly looked toward Magnus and spoke calmly in an off-putting fashion. "Have you ever... heard silence before? Felt it?" Her helmet recedes into her Warframe as Kalani looked back at the spot on the floor. Her hair, which may have once been a fiery orange, has long since turned a silvery-white, all colour having been drained from it by years of cryosleep. Regardless, it contrasted greatly with the blood on her Warframe, and this bothered Magnus slightly. "It isn't quite the absence of sound, but, something else... I can't explain it, but, I can hear it, feel it, almost. Don't you?"

Magnus had no idea what Kalani was talking about. How can there be silence if there doesn't have to be an absence of sound? "I don't quite know what you're talking about, Kalani."

Her, strangely enough, now silvery-blue eyes drifted back to Magnus, and they held what almost seemed like pity. "A shame. It feels..." She becomes distant for a moment, trying to find a word to describe something. "... Good. It doesn't please me, it doesn't make me happy, but it feels good."

Slowly, she stood, ignoring any wounds that would cause great concern in an ordinary Tenno. "I'm ready now." Kalani did not wait for Magnus to stand, nor did she say anything else, despite being questioned by the tank of a man. She was back in her own world, distant and apathetic.

* * *

Cordi's train of thought was disrupted by the loud opening of the large airlock door that lead from the docks into the main hall. Normally, she would dismiss the sound by the time it opened but this time her eyes were locked on a horrific sight. The Tenno whose name she recently learned was Kalani, the quiet, distant and apathetic Tenno who didn't care for questions, was soaked in blood. Being covered in blood was another thing, _that_ was normal and inevitable. _This_ , however, was not normal. There was not a spot she could see on Kalani that wasn't bloody. Whether the blood was of her enemies or herself, Cordi could not tell, but she knew that whoever Kalani was fighting, she had a deep hatred for them.

Cordi could confidently guess that Kalani had a bad run-in with the Corpus. The damaged Warframe and blank thousand mile stare gave that away, but what happened to her in detail was unknown to her and everyone else, as far as she knew. When she spoke to Zora about Kalani, Zora knew as little as she did, and Cordi had learned Zora was one of the most inquisitive Tenno in the clan. Kalani hadn't given even a moment of her attention.

Cordi wasn't the only one who had noticed the bloody figure. Many others had dropped what they were doing to stare in shock, disgust, and for a few, fear. Cordi didn't feel these. She felt sorry. Cordi couldn't come close to imagining what harrowing experience had driven this woman to such heights of violence as to soak herself in blood, she couldn't come close to imagining the pain and the suffering she had to endure. As far as she could tell, Cordi seemed to be the only person in the room who wanted to know what happened to her not just because she wanted to know, but because she wanted to somehow help her.

This is why when Kalani had left the med bay, riddled with stitches and bandages, she was followed by Cordi. The greenhorn didn't expect much talking from her; she wasn't aiming to start a conversation. She wanted to show Kalani that not everyone thought she was a monster. Cordi eventually caught up with the now much cleaner woman, outside of her Warframe and in some normal clothing, some pants and a sleeveless shirt, made of nanoweave, a light, silky material that could hold itself together longer than any fabric originating from Earth. Cordi noticed that both of Kalani's arms were wrapped in bandages below the elbow, and that her fingers looked as if they were just beginning to heal after being used to dig through a sea of glass and sharp rocks.

Cordi matches Kalani's pace, walking beside her. "Hi, uh, Kalani, right?" The distant Tenno's eyes drifted lazily towards Cordi, and while still blank, her gaze appeared different in some way. Kalani looked ahead once more, and only nodded slightly in response to Cordi's question.

"I guess your mission went well? I mean, you're here, and not dead." Cordi got no response from Kalani. Seems that confirming her name was as far as Cordi could get. It didn't matter to Cordi, however. It seemed nice to talk to someone, Cordi didn't care if Kalani listened or not, she just wanted to talk to _someone_ about something, and Kalani made no sign that it annoyed her, as long as she didn't ask any questions. This worked for Cordi. So when they arrived at the garden they sat in the other day, Cordi spoke after making herself comfortable beside Kalani, who sat with her knees tucked to her chest while her arms were wrapped around them. Cordi herself sat in a similar fashion, but nearly as tight as Kalani did.

"This is so exciting! Today I'm going to get my first mission. Getting assigned to my own squad and everything!" As expected, Kalani doesn't make a single sound. She stares a hole into the ground by her feet.

"I mean, I know it's nothing much for you, you're probably used to it, but, like, for me, this is amazing! I thought I'd be doing these things alone at this point, but I'm in a clan!" Cordi almost lost herself to excitement and leaned to hug Kalani, but quickly caught herself and resisted the urge, afraid that she might startle her.

Strangely enough, Kalani blinked. It was a slow, almost drowsy blink, but a blink, nonetheless, and suddenly, something Cordi would never expect happened. She spoke.

"Do you hear silence, too?"

Kalani's voice almost startled Cordi. She had expected to hear a rough, strong voice, like that of Elpis.' Instead, she heard a soft, almost calming voice. The question itself confused Cordi to no end.

"H-Hear silence? What do you mean by that?"

Her eyes shifted towards Cordi, they appeared distant as always, but they carried something else within their gaze, something that unsettled Cordi.

"Do you hear silence? I could hear it." This was the first time Kalani had maintained eye contact with Cordi for more than a brief few seconds, this stare was nearing a minute long, or so it felt to Cordi. Her gaze caused Cordi to shift uncomfortably in her spot.

"I-I don't think I have... Wh-What does it sound like?" Cordi was genuinely curious as to what "silence" sounded like to Kalani.

Her gaze did not move. It bore a hole into Cordi's very soul. "I can't describe it... but you will know it when you do hear it..." It was obvious now what other emotion Kalani's gaze held. It held desire. Whatever she thought was "silence," she sought for it. To Cordi's relief, Kalani shut her eyes and appeared to be trying to concentrate. "I... can't hear it anymore... it helped me forget..." Kalani's eyes suddenly flutter open, and she looks as if she realized she made a mistake. Maybe she did.

Cordi tilted her head, she was almost afraid to ask the question which burned in her mind, but she didn't let that fear get in the way of an opportunity to help. "Forget? Forget what?"

Kalani broke her soul-piercing gaze almost immediately after being asked the question and returned to staring at the floor.

"K-... Kalani?" Not a word left her mouth after that. Cordi guessed that it must have been a slip of the tongue, that she said it by accident.

"I'm sorry for asking. Can you tell me more about silence?"

Nothing. Cordi let off a soft sigh, and was about to resume talking about how excited she was, until Elpis entered the room, looking angry.

"Kalani, follow me. You and I have to straighten something out." She looked at Cordi briefly with a look that struck fear into her heart. "In private." Without a word, Kalani stood and met the Commander's angry stare with her own blank gaze, waiting for her to lead.

So Cordi sat alone. She would have been lying if she denied having tried to listen for the sound of silence. Unsurprisingly, she failed to hear it.

* * *

Elpis' already angry demeanour changed into fury once she and Kalani were alone.

"Let me make one thing straight to you, Kalani. Get in fucking line! I will _not_ have a mission ruined by your revenge! I get it that they fucked you up in the head, but that does _not_ mean you get to run around hap-fucking-hazardously, set off the alarms, and fuck up an entire operation that could have kept the tide from changing in the Corpus' favour! Because of your _stupid_ fucking idea, we have lost our only opportunity of learning how to destroy whatever they ar-"

Elpis' rant was cut short by two short and simple words, spoken with almost eerie calmness. "I know."

"Did I fucking say you cou-"

"I know what it is." Elpis' fiery stare is met by Kalani's blank and now cold gaze. "What they are making."

"Oh, so you here are _so_ much better than the thousands of other agents that died trying to get that info?"

"Yes." Her expression is blank and cold.

"What makes you say that?" Elpis could feel her anger rising.

"Because I know, and they're dead." Kalani said this with an unchanging expression of apathy, almost as if she didn't care about the other Tenno that had died.

This almost struck a nerve in Elpis. Kalani brushed aside thousands of deaths of their kin as if they meant nothing to her, but she calmed herself.

"Then spit it out already." She spoke curtly.

"They want to make a Warframe." Kalani gives Elpis' anger no heed. Or at least she looks the part.

"How could they _possibly_ make a Warframe? They're a closely kept Tenno secret." Elpis was fuming inside. The nerve Kalani had to dismiss the deaths of thousands of their kin, claim she was better than them, and make up something as ridiculous as that.

"Not anymore." Kalani gestured to herself, and for the first time, her speech faltered. "They... They tore my Warframe apart... They studied it, studied me. They talked about this, project; they didn't think I understood them. Zanuka was only the first step. It was to dip their foot into the pond."

Her face suddenly twists into a harsh, cold anger. "So if you think for even a moment," Kalani stands. "that I am lesser than you, or anyone here," She grabs the table she was seated at and pushed it into Elpis until she was stuck between her and the wall behind her and leaned towards Elpis until her face was mere inches from her own. Her voice harboured a frigid and harsh softness, her cold and angered gaze overpowered Elpis,' so she made her message clear. "I will _personally_ share my pain with you." Her voice almost seemed hoarse for a single moment. Kalani turned away and left, no one was brave enough to stop her.

* * *

Cordi pondered alone what Kalani could have meant by "hearing silence." She went to the Archives, located in the Rec District, in search of a codex to use. Thankfully, she did find a vacant codex there, as most of them were being used. Cordi sat staring at the screen for a while, thinking of what keywords to search. She decided to start with looking for Codex entries related to mental conditions related with extremely traumatic experiences. Of course, there were many on the all-too-known PTSD, but that didn't have anything to do with what Kalani claimed to hear. After a while, she did find something that wasn't related to PTSD, but instead, a state of mind that was only rumored to exist. The researcher called it the "Sanctum."

 _There have been many old tales of some Tenno falling into coma-like states, and almost never awakening. Most have come from the years of the Old War, but a few have come from years not so far behind us. After questioning a Frost Prime user, named Sulvus Attano, the story tale hero himself, on this subject, the brave warrior told me that this was called the Sanctum._

Cordi lost focus upon reading the name Sulvus Attano. He was one of the few Tenno that had lived since the beginning of the Old War itself, maybe even longer. He had many titles, but he was most widely known as Lord Sentinel. Leader of his clan, which was well known as the Sentinels of Shadow. His name was spoken in many tales; he performed astonishing feats of bravery and valour, leading the Orokin to victory. She shook off her excitement and resumed focusing on the subject at hand.

 _It supposedly happens to those who have experienced the most harrowing things a Tenno could ever face and lived to tell the tale. Attano continued to describe the many "phases" of this mental state. It began with merely a feeling of peace, harmony, or safety. There was never a pattern to this feeling's arrival, but whenever it passed, the affected would more often than not feel at danger, regardless of location. This progresses to not just a feeling, but a trance. The affected at this stage will sometimes fall into a daze. They do not register anything that happens around them, and feel truly at peace. When they leave this stupor, they are immediately overcome with panic, and will often flee from those they do not know well. Close friends are able to approach and attempt to calm them, but results vary from Tenno to Tenno._

The rest of the entry goes on about the different stages, which progressively puts the Tenno, as mentioned, in a coma-esque state. When and if they are awakened, they more often than not attack anything on sight; however, it didn't seem to be related to Kalani's silence.

A deep and gravelly voice coming from just behind her caused Cordi to gasp as she fought back the urge to scream. "You are looking into Kalani's silence too, it seems?"

Cordi looks over her shoulder to see a giant mountain of a man looking back at her with a surprisingly gentle expression. "H-How did you know?"

"I'm Captain of Security. I had a few people keep an eye and ear out. She spoke to me about this "silence," as well, although she never told me anything about forgetting, which is strange, because she had no reason to tell you anything. That was the first time she spoke to you, correct?" The giant man's tone is surprisingly gentle for how deep and rough it is, it almost doesn't suit his voice.

"Y-Yeah, th-that's right." Cordi nodded slowly.

"Ah, where are my manners, my name is Magnus. I believe your name is Cordi, correct? I dislike the powers I have as Captain of Security sometimes, so I try not to pry, but oftentimes Elpis commands it." There is a truly apologetic look in his eye.

"I-It's alright. It's nice to meet you, Magnus. S-So why are you talking to me about this?"

"Because I think we can help each other help Kalani. Don't bother searching for any diagnosable conditions, after hours of pouring over the subject; I have concluded it has nothing to do with this."

Cordi nodded concurringly. "O-Okay. What do you suggest we look into then?"

"I had pondered looking into more codex entries on this "silence," but I myself would seem rather strange doing so. You, however, don't know many people, but you know Zora. She can be valuable to us."

She tilted her head. Honestly, Cordi didn't want to involve Zora in this. She was afraid that Zora would let her curiosity get the best of her and ask one too many questions to Kalani. "H-How so?"

"While it would look strange to see "hearing silence" or "sound of silence" in our inquiry history, such a thing would not appear as strange in Zora's. Not only that, but she would pour over the Codex much more enthusiastically, which usually heralds thoroughness." He had a good point, although Cordi was unsure about getting Zora to look into this for her for the sake of her reputation. Sure, it was precious to her, but to use her only friend to preserve it? She was uneasy at the thought.

"What about Zora's reputation? Wouldn't people start to think she was going a little mad? I don't want to use my friend to protect my reputation."

Magnus sighs. "Do not think I make that suggestion without regret. I'm sorry to say your reputation means a lot here, if Elpis does not take you seriously, there is very little chance that you will progress far. Zora can afford that stigma that comes with searching things like that in the codex, she's asked stranger questions. You however, cannot. I doubt much will be asked of Zora if she searches it."

This comforted Cordi slightly. Magnus was most likely right, knowing Zora; she _has_ most likely already asked the Codex stranger questions. So she nodded. "O-Okay. I'll ask her about it next time I see her. Is there anything we should look into?"

"Her eyes. They have changed colour since the mission. They were sky-blue before, but are now a silvery-blue. It doesn't appear fully natural." Cordi didn't even notice that there was a change until Magnus brought it up. Kalani's eyes had indeed changed colour. It's not that she hadn't noticed the silvery-blue of that deep, piercing gaze that had lasted several minutes, that was one of the key factors that made it unsettling, but she had never got a good look at her eyes before.

"That's right. They did change. Her stare, as well." Cordi resists shuddering at the thought.

"Hm?" Magnus wasn't familiar to it, he made it obvious with his expression. Cordi then remembered Magnus was only informed of it, he never saw it himself.

"Wh-When she told me about the silence, she stared at me, for minutes on end. I-It looked different too. She was still as distant as ever, but, it looked as if she sought after hearing this "silence." It... It was unsettling."

Magnus seems to ponder for a moment, but is interrupted by a soft beep coming from a small device on his wrist. He looks at it and raises an eyebrow. "It appears Elpis has brushed Kalani the wrong way, she has received her first death-threat from her, it seems." He sighs. "I was afraid they would butt heads so soon. You will have to excuse me; I need to report to the Commander."

Cordi nods, slightly worried about Kalani. Elpis didn't seem like someone who messed around, then again, neither did Kalani. If something wasn't done to calm this, one would be on the floor bleeding. "O-Okay. Should I look into her eye colour?"

Magnus only nods as he turns to leave.

Cordi returns her focus to the codex and makes a few searches regarding natural changes to eye colour. Her searches eventually began to find some useful information, after digging through several hours' worth of vanity entries. She finally found an informative entry on adverse effects of damage to the Warframe in the equivalent of an evening on Earth from the equivalent of an afternoon. She certainly looked the part, too.

 _Although the Warframes of the current day cause little side-effects to the Tenno who use them, many older models were much more harmful if damaged. Early models of Frost and Ember Warframes were known to freeze or burn Tenno inside them, or even, very rarely, detonate. Although these side-effects are problems of the past, there are still problems which can be quite precarious to the unwary Tenno of the present day. One such problem resides within the material it is made from, Technocyte. Technocyte is very difficult to harness, even for the Tenno. Using a Warframe for the first time is equal to the weeks-long, constant battle for the control of one's own body, although Tenno mentally and physically prepared for this battle face no trouble with it, certain conditions will make this battle recur with greater intensity._

After reading a good section of the Technocyte's adverse reactions to critical damage, Cordi concluded that Technocyte played no role in Kalani's re-coloured eyes. She moved on to component damage, namely components within her helmet.

 _The helmet of a Warframe is a strange subject. The helmet, as many know, can easily recede into the mass of the Warframe, effectively merging with the rest of it, to reveal the head of a Tenno. Despite this apparent fluidity, there are some key components located within it, which in some miraculous way, remain fully intact after merging. One component is the HUDP, or Heads-Up Display Projector. This component connects directly to the nervous system to gain access to the optical cords of the Tenno's eyes, and, in some miraculous way, displays all the information needed for Tenno on the field. If one such component is damaged even in the slightest way, it will cease functioning and gradually drain the colour from the irises of the Tenno's eyes until they appear to be a silver-esque colour, mixed with whatever the Tenno's eye colour was previously. No serious eye damage has been recorded to have been caused by this malfunction, but it is advised to repair the HUDP as soon as possible, as it is a very valuable asset._

Cordi had found the cause. The Corpus must have somehow damaged the HUDP in Kalani's helmet and caused her eyes to slowly dull in colour, but this still did not explain what caused her to hear silence. Cordi hoped this entry had an explanation, so she read on in search for some form of auditory device located in the helmet, but, as she suspected, to no avail. By the time she had found all that she could and saved her findings in a portable data drive, it was less than an hour before the Archives were to be closed for the night. Cordi immediately made her way to her quarters, where she slept soundly.

* * *

When Kalani returned to the lily garden, she felt somewhat relieved that Cordi was not there. Cordi was the second person her judgement seemed to fail around. She didn't know Cordi. Kalani had no reason to tell her of the silence. Thankfully she had caught herself before she revealed her secret. Revealed her past.

She wanted no one's pity. It made her sick. They looked at her as if she were something else, something lesser. She hated it. She sat in the darkened corner of the lily garden, at anything but peace. Pain had once again returned to her. Not the pain of her wounds, no, that was negligible, the pain was that of remembering.

She sat in her corner, staring at the ground until she heard the door open. By the sound of how heavy the footsteps that followed were, she could tell it was Magnus.

"I must say you have no fear, Kalani. Elpis doesn't take kindly to threats." Magnus said in his deep, rough voice. She heard a trace of sympathy in his voice. She hated it.

"She thought she was above me. I told her where her place was." Kalani gazes towards Magnus, her silvery-blue eyes pierced his, and the emotion that her distant eyes carried couldn't be identified.

"I would suggest you do nothing more than say. Elpis is a powerful woman."

Her gaze did not break. Magnus realized this was the gaze that Cordi had told him about. It was indeed different. It almost seemed clouded, but it was obvious she could see and hear very clearly. It made him uneasy.

"So am I." Nothing could cause her to break the soul-penetrating gaze that Kalani aimed towards Magnus.

"Do you feel different, Kalani? Since the mission? Your eyes have changed colour." Kalani did not break her gaze, but she did appear to be concentrating, although Magnus wasn't entirely sure on what. He only hoped it was on his question.

"I don't think so... The silence is gone, now..." Kalani finally broke her gaze and stared down at the floor. Magnus felt relief once this happened.

"When did you start hearing it?" Magnus leaned closer to Kalani. He did not expect to be talking to her for long, so he did not bother to sit.

"When they were dead." When she answered, a long and eerie silence envelopes the room, although Kalani doesn't seem to notice it. The silence made Magnus once again feel uneasy. Was this how the Corpus or Grineer felt when they were being hunted by the Tenno? If it was, Magnus didn't like it. A hunter was never cut out to be the hunted.

Any other questions Magnus asked were met by silence. Kalani was finished talking. Magnus stood and bid farewell, although that too was met with unresponsive silence.

* * *

 **A/N: Hey guys, thank you so much for reading! Hope you guys are enjoying this so far. I've made this note to let you guys know I'm really excited to hear your feedback on Broken Talon, good or bad. So go ahead and fire away.**


End file.
